NEW DELHI: Indian authorities imposed security restrictions in Ladakh on Thursday, following deadly clashes between police and protesters demanding greater autonomy for the Himalayan region which borders China.
Protests turned violent on Wednesday after demonstrators threw stones at officers trying to disperse them in Leh, Ladakh’s main city, where they torched the regional office of India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party.
The Ministry of Home Affairs confirmed in a statement that the police had fired on the protesters — whom they referred to as a “mob” — and “unfortunately some casualties are reported.”
It said that more than 30 police personnel had been injured, while twice as many protesters were reported by protest organizers to have been wounded.
Following the incidents, restrictions were imposed in Ladakh’s main districts, Leh and Kargil, with markets closed and police and paramilitary troops patrolling the streets.
